While I wish that summer would last a few more months (or all year), my daughter is ready for cooler weather. When the chance to participate in the Project Run and Play Fall Favorites event, I knew she would be a willing model. I love plaids, despite my personal challenges in pattern matching, so I loved the idea of partnering with Cali Fabrics for the week one theme: Plaids.
The Project Run and Play shop has a ton of fun options for fall wardrobe planning but rather than give my ten year old daughter free rein to choose whatever she wanted (she'd probably still be browsing now and trying to decide), I narrowed it down to a few patterns and let her have her pick. She quickly picked the Cedar Coat. I had a feeling this might be her choice because she's been very jealous of the Sofiona Limestone jacket I made myself last year and wanted one for herself but it's not available in girls' sizing. The curved hem and belt of the Cedar looked close enough to make her happy until she grows into misses sizes.
I knew I wanted to use cotton flannel for that same cozy feel. I went with black and white plaid flannel. Like I mentioned, I am not great at matching patterns, despite all of my attempts (though I've improved a little). However, this was a great plaid to work with. The pattern isn't too large, so not much waste. It's 55" wide, which is harder to find in flannel, so this jacket only used 2 yards for the main. The pattern is the same in both directions along the grain, so pieces can be cut in either direction, also reducing waste and making matching easier. While I didn't realize that part when choosing the fabric, it made it a great choice for me. For the facing/collar, I wanted something fun, and we went with this pink cuddle cloud. The two together turned out to be a perfect combination! There's also a black poodle fur that we considered that also would have been great.
I made view C, which is the cardigan, however I lined it and fully enclosed it following the instructions for coat views A and B. I lined the jacket with a thermal waffle for extra warmth. I adapted slightly for the stretchier lining--I used my serger for the construction on the lining and took a slightly wider seam allowance since the lining would "grow" a bit from my experience. I had the perfect little tag from Kylie & The Machine.
Unfortunately when I finished up, hurricane Helene made her way all the way to the midwest and brought us some tropical heat and it was about 80 degrees. My daughter loves her new coat so much that she only complained a little bit about having to model in the heat. She said it makes her feel like a "fancy rich lady". She's planning to knit a hat to match (at her current knitting rate, that should be done when she's 12...I may need to buy more fabric to plan for her next jacket)
If you're inspired to make a jacket, go for it! It seems intimidating--I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated every time. My advice it to take it one step at a time (and maybe don't look ahead at how many steps there are). But each step itself is pretty straightforward and I had this one cut in one night and sewn up in one long afternoon. And if you're looking for plaid fabric, Cali Fabric plaids are on sale for an additional 15% off right now with code PLAID24. Best of luck matching those plaids, may the odds be ever in your favor.
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